The present invention relates to a contaminant cleaning system. In particular, exemplary embodiments can include a reactive substance cleaning system and methods to provide a capability to generate or use activated reactants or reactive substances that chemically react with contaminants on or inside of items to be cleaned. Embodiments can also include a reactive substance or activated reactant transfer system using differential vacuum or pressure between multiple chambers to move the activated reactant or reactive substances or materials. Differential pressure can also be used to move reaction byproducts, reactions of the activated reactant, or reactive substances or materials that chemically react with the contaminants in a cleaning chamber into contact with analysis equipment. Control systems can be used to repeat cleaning cycles until a measured threshold or condition is met. Exemplary activated reactants or reactive materials, substances, or gas(es) can be low energy plasma, e.g., selected reactive gas or gas(es) comprising reactive materials including ionized reactive gases, free radicals, or other reactive substances that react with identified contaminants to result in a cleaning, contaminant reduction/removal, effect or outcome.
Existing cleaning systems use solvents comprised of hazardous materials as well as ozone depleting substances. Current methods employing solvents are incompatible with cleaning a wide variety of articles or items to be cleaned given such solvents damage such articles or items, thus it is desirable to eliminate or reduce use of such materials for industrial processes. Additionally, a variety of such existing cleaning systems are simply ineffective in providing desired cleaning. Moreover, a great deal of difficulty has been encountered in efforts to create alternatives to existing cleaning systems such as getting an alternative cleaning means inside items such as pressure gages due to lack of ease of access.
Accordingly, new contaminant cleaning systems and related methods are both needed and provided. Exemplary embodiments can include a reactive substance generator to produce or transfer reactive substance(s) that react with contaminant(s) on an item into a cleaning chamber. An analysis section can be attached to the cleaning chamber to perform gas analysis on gas samples brought into the analysis chamber that measure reaction byproducts from the interaction of reactive substance(s) with the contaminants. An exemplary valve system can selectively couple the reactive substance generator, the analysis section, and the cleaning chamber. An exemplary pumping system, in combination with the valve system, can selectively generate differential pressure/vacuum levels between the reactive substance generator vs cleaning chamber as well as between the cleaning chamber and analysis section. For example, the analysis chamber can be configured to have a higher vacuum than the cleaning chamber to facilitate passage of gas test samples into the analysis chamber.
For example, a plasma reactant cleaning system using cyclical differential pressure and vacuum levels which have testing means for determining when a desired level of cleaning has been achieved as well as related methods can be provided. Exemplary embodiments can include a plasma generator configured to generate low energy plasma from one or more cleaning gases or reactants selected to chemically react with contaminant materials to be removed from an article or item and deliver such resulting low energy cleaning plasma into a cleaning chamber. Byproduct gases will be formed in a cleaning chamber or in proximity to exposed surfaces (interior or exterior) of article or items to be cleaned when the cleaning or reactant plasma reacts with contaminant materials on exposed interior or exterior surfaces of an article or item. An exemplary analysis chamber can be attached to the cleaning chamber using, for example, a test sample input valve system and gas manifold(s). A gas analyzer can be coupled with the analysis chamber to perform gas analysis on samples of the byproduct gases that are brought into the analysis chamber through the test sample input valve system. A pumping system can be coupled with the analysis chamber and the cleaning chamber to provide a vacuum source for each chamber. Plasma cleaning or reactant gases and cleaning or reactant byproduct gases will move from one chamber or portion of the reactive substance cleaning system under comparatively higher pressure or lower vacuum level to another chamber or portion of the system under comparatively lower pressure or higher vacuum. The higher pressure cleaning or reactant gases moving into the lower pressure or higher vacuum area will expand to fill a volume of a given chamber or portion under lower pressure. In other words, in various embodiments the pumping system operates to generate low pressure or ultra-high vacuum levels in the cleaning chamber then the plasma that is generated at higher pressure and will flow into the lower pressure, higher vacuum cleaning chamber when directed by connecting valves, causing the reactive plasma cleaning gases to disperse within the void of the cleaning chamber and onto exposed surfaces of attached articles or items. The pumping system also operates to selectively and differentially generate low pressure or ultra-high vacuum levels in the analysis chamber and the cleaning chamber where the analysis chamber has a higher vacuum than the cleaning chamber during transfer cycles to facilitate passage of gas test samples into the analysis chamber. Exemplary embodiments of a cleaning system cycle reactive substances, e.g., gases as well as reaction byproducts by varying vacuum/pressure levels between sections of the system and thereby moves reaction byproducts, e.g., gases, from the cleaning chamber and/or article or item to be cleaned to the analysis section, including the gas analyzer, to perform testing as well. During or at completion of such transfer cycling, a gas analyzer coupled to the analysis chamber can perform testing to determine if cleaning or reactant byproduct gases are present at higher than levels that have been determined to be acceptable based on predetermined thresholds. Where such a byproduct gas threshold is not found to have been met or has exceeded or went past a selected value, then additional plasma cleaning or reactant gases can be introduced into the cleaning chamber by additional pressure/vacuum differential or transfer cycling to continue further reactions of cleaning/reactive substances such as reactive gas or gases (e.g., comprising ionized or activated reactants) with contaminant materials on surfaces of interest of such articles or items to be cleaned. Such cycling can be repeated until acceptable levels of byproduct gas or gases have been observed or measured based on, e.g. comparisons with such a reaction byproduct threshold(s). Multiple sources of reactive substances or materials can also be used with alternative embodiments of the invention along with different sequencing of such sources to achieve desired reaction based cleaning.
Additional features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of the illustrative embodiment exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the invention as presently perceived.